This species was previously within the genus Hyla but has recently been moved to the resurrected genus Hypsiboas (Faivovich, et al., 2005). Hypsiboas boans from the Venezuelan Gran Sabana are smaller than those in the lowlands and do not construct basin-like nests; instead, they breed in small, permanent streams. Their discs more closely resemble those of Hypsiboas wavrini, and the tadpoles are also different. Duellman (1997) concluded that they might be specifically distinct from the widespread Hypsiboas boans in the lowlands.

This species is widely distributed in the Amazon basin, the upper Orinoco river, the delta of the Orinoco river, Trinidad island (not present on Tobago) Trinidad and Tobago, the Guianas, Peru, lowland tropical Bolivia, the Amazonian basin of Brazil, the Pacific lowlands of Colombia, Esmeraldas department, Ecuador and the central and eastern lowlands of Panama. In Venezuela, it has been recorded in the states of Amazonas, Bolívar and Delta Amacuro, as well as from the Andean foothills of Barinas and Táchira. It has been recorded between 0 and 1,000m asl.

It is a nocturnal species found in tropical rainforest, where it is found on trees up to a height of 5m. It is also found on bushes and trees in gallery forests, and it may use exposed bedrocks. The eggs are laid in mud basins, which are built by the males at the edge of watercourses or ponds (Duellman, 1997). The tadpoles are then washed into the river. During the dry season, they are active at night on sandy or muddy edges of slow-moving streams (Rodríguez and Duellman, 1994). It is not known if the species can adapt to habitat modification.

Many populations are protected within National Parks and Biosphere Reserves. In Ecuador, its geographic range overlaps with Parque Nacional Yasuní, Reserva Biológica Limoncocha, Parque Nacional Sumaco Napo-Galeras and Reserva Ecológica Cotacachi-Cayapas. In Peru it can be found within the Manu Biosphere Reserve and Tambopata National Reserve. In Panama, it has been recorded from Parque Nacional Chagres and Parque Nacional Darién. In Guyana, it is known from the Mabura Hill Forest Reserve (Ernst et al., 2005).